Grip and twist bottle cap remover



July s, 1969 F. H. CARTER 3,453,911

GRIP AND TWIST BOTTLE CAP REMOVER Filed June 5. 1968 52 FRANK H. CARTER INVENTOR.

www] gm!) ATTORNEYS United States Patent O U.S. Cl. 81-3.42 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Small, hand-held appliance to grip and twist screw type lids `and caps from bottles and the like. An elongated bar or body member has a hand engaging member as well as gripper elements for engaging a lid. A slidable member is mounted on the elongated bar member and contains finger holds as well as gripper elements. Finger pressure moves the slide member gripper elements into contact with the lid and forces the bar member gripper elements into engagement with the lid so that the lid is rmly grasped. After being gripped the cap is removed from or tightened on the bottle by simple twisting action.

Background of the invention This invention relates generally to the art of closure removing tools, and more particularly to manually held and operated appliances for removing threaded caps or lids from bottles, jars and the like.

As those skilled in the art are aware, Women, children and elderly people frequently have diiiiculty in removing so-called screw type lids or closures from jars and bottles. In some instances the bottle should have the lid very tightly secured, particularly where it holds medicines or contents that may be harmful or injurious to children. In recent years there has been an increased use of threaded closure members on bottles and other containers holding a wide variety of consumer products. In some cases the lids are both threaded and crimped onto the mouth of the container. Some people lack the manual strength to break the threaded cap portion loose or free of the crimped portion. A device such as the instant invention makes it possible for people lacking hand and finger strength to very easily and conveniently remove such caps. A number of prior art devices have been designed to remove closures, caps, lids and other threaded devices. Some have been extremely simple but awkward. Some have been complex and accordingly expensive and others simply impractical.

Summary of the invention Generally the invention comprises an elongated bar member at one end of which is a curved brace which is received into the palm of the hand. Gripper elements are located on the bar member next to the hand on the underside of the bar. For movement along the greater length of the bar is a member which is slidably received on the bar. The slide member also has gripper elements on the underside thereof so that by simple manipulation with the fingers the gripper elements on the bar and on the slide element engage a closure member.

Accordingly, it is among the features of this invention to provide a closure removal tool that is particularly adapted to remove screw type caps and lids from bottles and jars with great convenience to the user. Another feature is to provide a closure removal appliance which is simple and unique in construction and economical to produce. Another feature is to provide a closure tool which has particular advantages for people who lack the manual strength or dexterity to remove resistant caps and lids from bottles. Another feature is to provide an appliance that centers itself as it contacts the lid. The tool is very useful on small diameter lids and caps that are difficult to get hold of. Another feature is an appliance which requires only one hand to operate so that the other hand is free to hold the bottle or jar. Another feature is a device which allows the user not only to remove tightly wedged caps but to put caps back on bottles securely, for instance with bottles containing substances which should remain inaccessible to children. Another feature is to provide a tool which is manipulatable by simple and convenient finger and hand movement by either right or left handed persons.

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Brief description of the draswlngs FIG. l is a top plan view of the upper side of the invention showing details of design and construction;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the under side of the invention showing a closure member in dash dot lines and the manner in which the gripper elements Will contact such closure member;

FIG. 3 is a cross section view taken along the line 3 3 of FIG. 2 further showing details of construction of the sliding portion; and

FIG. 4 is a partial view in perspective showing a modified form of the gripper element.

Description of preferred embodiment Referring now to the drawings, it will be seen that the invention, generally designated by the number 10, has an elongated support and guide member generally designated by the number 14. Support and guide member 12 is made up of an elongated bar 16 having an outer end 18, an inner end 20 and upper and lower surfaces 17 and 19 respectively. Attached to inner end 20 is a curved or arcuate hand engaging member or brace 22. As can be seen by reference to FIG. 4 the arcuate member or brace 22 is connected to the bar by welding or other means. Brace 22 can be seen to have a fairly large radius of curvature for comfortable engagement with the heel of the hand. Near inner end 20 and spaced slightly from arcuate brace 22 are outwardly extending ear sections 24 and 26. On the under surface 19 of bar 16 and ear sections 24 and 26 are stationary gripper elements 28 and 30. Gripper elements 28 and 30 are preferably round knurled knobs detachably and non-rotatably secured to the bar by screws 32 and 34. Gripper elements 28 and 30 are shown to be spaced .apart to present separated engaging points of contact on the side of the lid or cap. The screws 32 and 34 may be loosened to partially rotate gripper elements 28 and 30 and then retightened, if for instance part of the gripper elements, which preferably will be made of metal, should become worn. At the outer end near edge 18 of bar 16 is a stop bracket 36 to prevent slide portion 14 from disengaging itself from support portion 12. Stop 36 may be a dimple punch in bar 16 or other means such as a screw.

Slide piece 14 is comprised of a center portion 38 which when viewed in cross section as in FIG. 3 is generally U-shaped to deline a rectangular cavity 40 for receiving bar 16. Center section 38 also has outwardly extending finger rings 42 and 44 and finger projections 46 and 48 for those persons who have larger hands or longer fingers and who may prefer to actuate the sliding portion by engaging the fingers with outer edge 50. Slide piece 14 is retained on bar 16 by bridge element 52 which may be spot Welded or otherwise secured to the under surface of center portion 38. On the underside of slide portion 14 are additional gripper elements 54 and 56 secured by screws 58 and 60. Again the gripper elements 54 and 56 are preferably non-rotatable and coact with gripper elements 28 and 30 to firmly engage a lid or cap so it can easily be twisted and either removed or tightened on a bottle.

It will be appreciated that gripper elements 28, 30, 54 and 56 may be substituted for by any number Of gripper element configurations, the primary considerations being expense, ease of manufacture `and the like. FIG. 4 shows that the gripper elements may be rotatable star wheels 62 and 64 each curved side of which has a radius of curvature small enough to allow two points of the wheels to engage a small diameter cap. It will be appreciated that once the rotatable wheels 62 and 64 have engaged a cap, they will not rotate since two f the points will have made contact. It should be understood that while it is preferred that support member 12 have two spaced apart gripper elements 28 and 30 one only might be provided in place of the two. A three or four point gripper engagement of a particular lid is desirable since the tool will have a self centering capability which would not be true if only one gripper were provided on each of the two pieces 12 and 14.

The foregoing is merely illustrative of the preferred embodiment of this invention. Since numerous modifications and equivalents may be devised by those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described. Accordingly it is intended that all suitable equipments should fall within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A closure removing device, comprising:

(a) an elongated main support member having first and second ends and top and bottom surfaces and also having brace means at said first end thereof for engaging the users hand,

(b) at least one first closure gripper element located on the bottom surface of said main support member inwardly of said brace means,

(c) a slide member slidably received for movement on said main support member `and having top and bottom surfaces and finger engaging means, and

(d) at least one second closure gripper element located on the bottom surface of said slide member inwardly of said finger engaging means, for coactingly engaging a closure with said first gripper element, With said rst and second closure gripper elements being disposed between said brace means and said nger engaging means.

2. The closure removing device according to claim 1 and wherein said first and second closure gripper elements are non-rotatable.

3. The closure removing device of claim 1 and wherein said first and second closure gripper elements each comprises a pair of spaced apart, detachably secured closure engaging elements.

4. The closure removing device according to claim 1 and wherein said main support member is a bar means of substantially rectangular cross section.

5. The closure removing device according to claim 4 and wherein said finger engaging means on said slide member are defined by surfaces located generally to each side of and coplanar with said bar means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,330,513 9/1943 Nichols 81-3.42

ROBERT C. RIORDON, Primary Examiner.

R. V. PARKER, JR., Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 81-129 

